ascending
by the alphabet soup
Summary: The ten Garde are not from a different planet. Instead, they are completely human. AU.
1. Chapter 1

**Originally posted on my tumblr.**

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Lorien Legacies.

**Title:** ascending

**Summary:** The ten Garde are not from a different planet. Instead, they are completely human. AU.

* * *

_The humidity of the swamp latched on to her clothes and stuck to her hair, making sweat bead up on her forehead. She had the distinct feeling that there was a specific reason she was in the swamp, but she could never make out why. _

_Four other people were with her. One was a girl with olive toned skin and black hair. Her eyes were a stormy color, and something about her radiated authority. The remaining three were boys. One, the most muscular, has long black hair and dark eyes. He looked like he was always angry for some reason or another. The second was bulky and short with brown hair in a military cut. The third was the one that stuck out the most. He had a handsome face framed with curly brown hair and a deep tan. He had a cheery smile, and bright green eyes. _

_All four of the people looked eerily familiar. _

_The scene shifted again. Now, she was kneeling over the curly haired boy's body. His shirt was soaked with blood and she felt a burning pain in her ankle as if she was being branded with a mark. She was faintly aware of tears streaming down her face and blurring her vision before the scene, as it always did, went black._

She woke up gasping for breath. Her body had been soaked in a cold sweat and the unnerving emotion of fear filled her mind before she realized she was fine. Soft, warm blankets were wrapped around her body and she sat in her bed. She wasn't in a swamp, and she definitely wasn't crying over someone's dead body. She closed her eyes and calmed herself, and then reopened her eyes to see the time on the digital clock on her nightstand: 7:21 a.m. She rolled out of bed, reluctant to leave its warmth, and her feet were greeted with the cold hardwood floor. _Thank goodness I'm on winter break_, she thought before looking outside. The front yard had been swaddled in a fresh blanket of snow during the night. A smile grew on her face at the sight of the unmarked snow. She had always loved the snow as a child. Her and Adelina, her aunt, would create snowmen together when she was only seven-years-old. Now that she was seventeen her love of snowmen had transformed into a love of the tranquillity that unblemished snow personified.

She put on a robe over her night clothes and walked downstairs to be greeted with the smell of coffee and toast. "Good morning, Marina." her aunt greeted as she took a seat at the dining room table.

"Morning, Adelina."

"Katarina told me that she and Maren were heading to Spain in a few months, and she asked if you wanted to come."

"Really? But what about you?"

"I told her I could stay here. I wouldn't want to make the trip cost even more, and someone does have to watch the house."

"Katarina wouldn't mind! I know you two are great friends, and you have been wanting to go to Spain. Will you at least think about it?"

Adelina laughed. "Okay, I'll think about it. What are you plans for today?"

"I was gonna go to the library. You wouldn't believe how many papers I have to write over the break."

"Try me. I _have_ been in high school, you know. Anyway since you're going to the library could you drop off some books for me?"

"Sure."

* * *

The snow began to fall down almost as soon as Marina left her house. Flakes landed in her brown hair then melted. She tightened the blue scarf around her face and neck to protect them from the cold as she continued her walk to the library. Not many people were out — probably still sleeping — but the ones who were outside were shovelling snow out of their driveways. She had to admit that shovelling snow was definitely a drawback however much she loved the precipitation.

As she walked, her thoughts wandered to the dream which had woken her up. This hadn't been a new dream, either. She had been plagued with this same dream off and now for almost a week now; she knew sooner or later she would have to do something about it.

The one thing that bothered her despite everything else in the dream was the familiarity. She felt as if she had experienced those events before. As if there was a time where she was in a swamp surrounded by those four teenagers who were roughly the same age as her. And the thing was that Maren looked exactly alike the girl in her dream. They had the same features. The same hair. The same posture. The same steely expression. She felt like she had forgotten a portion of her life.

With her mind wrapped around her thoughts she didn't see the boy suddenly appear in front of her, and she certainly didn't stop before she bumped into him and the pair fall into the snow. She scrambled up and offered her his hand which he gratefully took. "Oh God, I'm so sorry! I wasn't paying attention!" He stood up and smiled at her.

"It's fine!"

When she was given a chance to study who exactly she had bumped into, her eyes widened. He noticed her surprise and his smile turned into an expression of concern. "What happened?"

"Nothing. Just — Nothing." she replied. The boy in front of her looked exactly like the curly haired boy in her dream. The boy whose body she was crying over. It was completely unnerving, and it freaked her out a little. "I'm Marina."

"Hi, Marina. I'm Joesph." She bit her lip, contemplating what she should do. This was all surreal.

"I have to go. I'll see you later, I guess?"

"Sure. See you later, Marina." he replied before she started walking away. Her mind was racing and her heart beating loudly. She wouldn't have been surprised if everyone outside could hear it.

Her goal to go to the library and actually get started on her schoolwork was abandoned and set aside in favor of the question that had recently popped up in her mind. She was surprised it hadn't occurred to her sooner.

_What is happening to me?_


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Lorien Legacies.

* * *

A hour turned into three. Three hours turned into twelve. Twelve hours turned into one day. One day turned into a week. One week turned into two.

Ever since meeting Joseph, the strange memories had been growing stronger, more powerful. She no longer had them in the form of a dream anymore. She can no longer deny their existence when the visions (dreams, memories, she doesn't know _what_ to call them anymore) broke into her reality. Any little thing could trigger them, and it made her want to slam her head against a table. _Why won't you go away?_ she wanted to scream, but that would be pointless in the long run. She would be convinced she was going crazy if there wasn't a voice whispering in the back of her mind, "Remember who you are."

Maren noticed her change in behavior immediately. Marina could have swore that the two had known each other in another life before since they knew each other so well, but now Marina was almost certain they had known each other once. She wasn't supposed to believe in other lives, second chances, all of those things, but these memories that clung to her consciousness and forced to believe in them made her rethink her beliefs. She had known Maren before. She had known Joseph before. She had known all those other people who she wanted to label as strangers, but she had a nagging feeling that calling them that would be severely incorrect.

"Marina, are you feeling okay?" The pair sat on Marina's bed. Maren's voice adopted a concerned tone instead of the usual aggressive one. Marina would have said she was fine, but Maren knew her all too well to believe it.

But she still paused before replying. Maren wouldn't have believed her if she told her. Hell, she herself was still having trouble believing this. But the memories...they tore at her mind and begged her to believe them, to take them in as reality despite her knowing that she had never been to a swamp before. She had never been to a swamp or in a desert or in India or in a giant penthouse, and she had most definitely never seen someone die in front of her. But who else could she tell?

"I've been having this dreams." she started before her voice trailed off.

"What kind of dreams?" Maren prompted with a smug smile. Marina blushed.

"Not those kind, God! No, more like visions I guess. I keep seeing this swamp, and in this swamp I see you and three boys. All four of you look ready for a fight, and there is always this feeling of dread. Then, when the scene changes, I'm kneeling beside the body of one of the boys and crying." She stopped when she noticed Maren's face which grew paler as if she knew exactly what Marina was talking about.

"You had them, too?" Marina asked incredulously. But perhaps she shouldn't have been surprised. After all, she had been seeing Maren in these dreams as well.

Maren nodded. "The dreams started about a week ago. At first, it was a swamp, like you said, but I've been having other dreams as well. Most of them show me fighting these pale skinned people who don't look completely human, but in some I'm talking to these two people who I swear I know, but I've never seen before in my life." She stopped then looked at Marina's expression. "You think this means something, don't you?"

"I do. These are more than just dreams. A few weeks ago, I saw one of the boys from the swamp when I was walking to the library. And I'm not saying that the two were similar. No, it was the same person. I'm sure of it."

Silence filled the room for an unnaturally long time before either of them spoke again. "Did you catch the boy's name?" Maren asked.

"Yes. His name is Joseph. You want to know if he's having the dreams, too, don't you?"

"It's likely. And if he isn't I bet he'll have them soon."


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Lorien Legacies.

**Note:** Apologies for the wait.

* * *

"Hi, Marina!"

She looked up from the book, her heart simultaneously sinking and soaring at the sound of his voice. Walking through the endless shelves of books, Joseph wore a smile that lit up the eerily quiet library. The librarian, an elderly woman with too small glasses and a pointed nose, shushed him rather violently and he ducked his head like he was truly sorry.

She gave Joseph a smile of her own despite the conflicting feelings running through her mind and the vision of him being stabbed in the chest repeating itself over and over. The dim light overhead gave off a ghostly shadow as he stopped at the table ridden with various books ranging from non-fiction to fiction and thick ones to impossibly skinny with immaculate bindings. "May I?" he whispered and she had to stifle a short laugh at his antics before she nodded and he took a seat. He carefully took the book closest to him and looked at the title. "_A Tale of Two Cities_. You like reading the classics?"

She shook her head which caused a disappointed frown that was obviously forced to form on his face. "No, that one's just for school. Most of the others are for entertainment except _The Iliad_." He placed the book back on the table and his brilliant green eyes scanned the array of books before him. "You're a reader then. Nice." He sounded genuinely impressed; she couldn't help the blush that formed on her cheeks.

"Only when I have time." she admitted as his eyes again looked at hers. Like an unwelcome guest, the reoccurring vision of him because stabbed in the chest entered her mind and she just barely held in a gasp. "So, um, I haven't seen you before. Did you move here recently?" Her throat suddenly felt dry and she had the almost uncontrollable desire to cry despite nothing going wrong in her immediate life. An immense feeling of terror coupled with anger filled her being, although it wasn't directed at the boy in front of her. Rather, she had the feeling it was directed at the shorter boy in her dreams although she couldn't even bring to describe how she knew that.

"Marina, are you okay?" Joseph asked, concern laced in his voice and she nodded.

"Yes, I-I'm fine." she managed to say without spitting out her words. Marina closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and attempted to cleanse herself of whatever was happening to her. When she opened her eyes he didn't look convinced, but he at least made an effort not to bother her about it.

"If you say so. Anyway, I did move here about a month ago. Most of the time was spent unpacking so that's probably why we haven't seen each other before." The worried tone doesn't entirely leave his voice for which she was slightly grateful, but it only made her wonder if he hasn't been given the visions yet, and Marina started to wonder if perhaps waiting here for him to show up was just a failed expedition. But the more she talked to him, the more she began to realize that it might have been a failed plan in Maren's eyes, but even if he wasn't having these bizarre dreams he was a genuinely interesting person that she could talk to for hours on end and never be bored.

So, naturally, the vision of him being stabbed in the chest only inflicted more pain.

* * *

"So Spain, huh? You want to travel the world then? Or is Spain the only place in mind?" The pair walked side by side through the gradually melting snow, their pace matching and nearly identical grins on their faces. The continuously brisk air made her hair blow into her face which led Marina to regret not making the decision to tie her hair back.

The sun hung low in the sky as the ethereal orb cast shadows on the trees, houses, and street lamps; it stared at the two like an ever watchful protector that guarded their secrets and knew exactly what was happening to Marina when she herself didn't.

"I've always wanted to travel, I guess. There's just something about seeing new places and getting to explore them and undercover their mysterious that's just exciting to me. What about you? Do you ever want to travel in the future?"

"I've been travelling ever since I was a kid," he replied. "My father had to move because of his job, but eventually it became less about the job and more about seeing new places and experiencing the different cultures. He shared the same mindset as you."

As they stopped in front of Marina's house, he grinned at her. "I enjoyed talking with you, and I hope you like Spain, Marina. I've never been, but I've heard it's beautiful."

"It hasn't even been decided yet," she informed him with a smile of her own. "I still need to convince my aunt to go with me."

"Well, if you do, be sure to take loads of pictures." He knelt down in front of her and brought her hand to his mouth, placing a kiss on the skin. "Until next time, milady." She blushed and pulled her hand away, the grin never leaving her face when the door opened. Maren stepped out, her face tight as if she was thinking, when she saw Marina.

"I was looking for you-" She stopped when she noticed Joseph who had stood up, stiff and wide-eyed. "Hello?" she asked, her voice borderline worried.

Joseph's voice came out small and shocked - completely different from how he had been speaking with Marina only moments before. "Six?"


End file.
